COLLEGEVILLE - Miranda Peto is in the stretch run of her two-sport athletic career at Alvernia University in Reading.

Peto, a senior who starred in field hockey during the fall, is now one of the leaders for the Alvernia women’s softball team, which paid a visit to nearby Ursinus College last Thursday for a doubleheader.

The Crusaders swept the non-conference twinbill by scores of 6-1 and 11-1.

“It’s been going really well,” said Peto prior to the first game of the set. “We are 17-3 (now 21-3) and started off with a 7-1 spring break in Florida. We came back and are taking care of the conference at 6-0 (8-0). It’s been amazing.”

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Peto has been starting in center field and batting out of the leadoff spot in the order for Alvernia. She utilizes her abundant speed and quickness in both capacities.

“We had been struggling here and there,” said Peto. “We have a tendency to come out slowly in the first game of doubleheaders. But we come back in the second game. That was in the early going, but we are improving on that.”

Alvernia followed up the Ursinus sweep with another sweep against conference foe Elizabethtown by scores of 9-0 and 3-0 on Saturday, April 6. Next up on the conference slate is Lebanon Valley.

“Our hitting has been saving us,” said Peto. “We have been hitting one through nine. Regardless of who it is, someone can take your job. You have to get it done.”

The Crusaders only graduated two seniors so they have plenty of returning players with game experience under their belts.

“We also have a lot of freshmen who came in and have stepped up,” said Peto. “And our pitchers have been phenomenal. They each take a game. Everybody is doing what is needed to get done to get the win.”

Peto has started all 24 games for the Crusaders and is batting .414 with 87 at-bats, 31 runs scored, 36 hits, eight doubles (tied for team lead), one triple, two home runs and 23 runs batted in.

She also has a .598 slugging percentage and .464 on-base percentage with eight walks and is a perfect 7-for-7 in stolen base attempts (tied for team lead) with 52 total bases. She also has 99 total plate appearances for a tie in the team leadership category.

Defensively, Peto has 39 putouts, one assist and two errors for a .952 fielding percentage.